Sexual assault trial begins for ex-Garden Grove officer

Deputy district attorney Eric Scarbrough drew a common theme in his opening arguments for the trial of former Garden Grove police Officer Jesse Green:

Three women believed Green was a kind and attractive guy. Their dates with him had included dinner and drinks, and each was interested in having sex.

But Green's demeanor transformed in the bedroom. He called the women derogatory names, said they belonged to him and then forcibly sodomized them. They cried and screamed.

"They told him to stop. They told him no," Scarbrough said. "And the other thing they have in common is that he refused."

Green's long-awaited trial began Tuesday. He is charged with four felony counts of sexual assault stemming from off-duty dates in 2006 and 2009.

Garden Grove police fired Green, 36, a month after his arrest in late 2010. He has been released on $250,000 bail and faces a maximum 24 years in state prison if convicted on all counts.

Two of Green's accusers are in their 40s and one is in her 20s. The Orange County Register does not normally identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault.

Green's attorney, John Barnett, argued that any sex that did occur was consensual and questioned each accuser's credibility. In some instances, the women seem to have responded oddly after the assaults they allege.

One woman says she consented to have sex with Green after she was assaulted. In another case, Barnett said, a woman continued to stay in contact with Green months later, even wishing him a happy birthday.

Scarbrough acknowledged to the jury that some of the testimony may seem bizarre. He said the women were confused about Green's conduct and had trouble recalling some of the details.

"To be honest, I think she's going to tell you she doesn't remember exactly when the first date was," Scarbrough said of one woman. "She's not the best historian about the timeline of events."

But he insisted the women clearly remembered and would describe the nights they were assaulted by Green and how terrified they felt of him afterward.

Regardless of the trial's outcome, the case has already spurred the Garden Grove Police Department to review its hiring practices.

After undergoing psychological evaluations and rigorous background checks, Green was hired by the department on April 17, 2006. His earliest accuser says the assault happened 11 days later on April 28.

Police were aware of that accusation in 2006, conducted an internal investigation and cleared him to return to duty. With hindsight, the department now regrets that response.

"We didn't have all the facts," said Lt. Jeff Nightengale, a spokesman for the department. "We would've preferred to handle this differently if we had more information in 2006."

Green's trial is scheduled to resume today at 9:30 a.m. It is estimated it will take two to three weeks to complete the trial.